Wind power bought as part of pact over Ark. plant

Southwestern Electric Power Co. has signed long-term agreements to purchase power from wind projects as a way to meet a renewable energy commitment it made in a recent legal settlement over a coal-fired power plant in southwestern Arkansas.

Southwestern Electric officials said Wednesday wind power from projects in Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas will help it exceed its 400-megawatt renewable energy requirement. Southwestern Electric is a unit of American Electric Power Co.

Environmental groups and neighbors of the John W. Turk Jr. Power plant in Fulton challenged the facility's construction on grounds it would cause pollution and damage the surrounding land.

The company agreed to mothball an older coal plant in Texas to offset pollution generated by the new facility.

Sierra Club spokesman Glen Hooks said clean wind energy will now power homes and businesses in the region for years.